{IRIS}
I raced through the hallways without stopping, boots striking stone so softly it felt as if the castle itself was swallowing the sound.
The Shadow Guard glided behind me, silent as a second darkness peeled away from the first. Its presence clung to my spine, cold and constant, yet oddly reassuring.
And the necklace at my throat burned faintly against my skin, a steady reminder that I would be protected.
Somehow, impossibly, I felt certain I would find Caroline.
And that certainty was the only thing keeping me from breaking down.
I flung open doors along the corridor without hesitation. One after another. The locks splintered beneath my hand, hinges groaning as if protesting the act, but I did not slow.
What waited behind those doors was a procession of horrors that layered themselves upon my mind whether I wanted them there or not.
